DESPITE a downtrend in the price of crude oil, pump prices here are still hovering around a record $2 a litre - something that has many drivers fuming.

The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) said it had received several complaints from 'angry' motorists.

'Petrol companies have been adjusting their pump prices upwards quite swiftly over the last few months due to oil price increases,' said Case executive director Seah Seng Choon. 'But oil prices have come down in the beginning of this year and we have yet to see pump prices adjusting downwards.'

Oil companies here raised pump prices at least six times between June and November last year, on the back of rising crude oil prices. But while oil was trading at around US$99 a barrel in November and briefly touched US$100 last month, it has since fallen. Last week, the price hit US$88. That is one of the reasons observers believe pump prices should come down.

Oil consultant Ong Eng Tong said demand for petrol in China - among the region's thirstiest nations - should be lower now as 'fewer people are on the road because of the bad winter'.

He said the wholesale price of 92-octane petrol is now around US$100, from US$107 last month.

Not only that, the US dollar has weakened against the Singapore dollar. It is now around $1.41, from $1.46 some six months ago. As oil and wholesale fuel prices are quoted in US currency, a stronger Singapore dollar means the products should be cheaper to buy.

Case's Mr Seah said the association wrote to oil firms last month raising the issue of unyielding pump prices, but it has yet to receive a response.

Responding to queries from The Straits Times, the oil firms said crude prices are not the only determinants of pump rates. Shell, which made US$31 billion (S$44 billion) last year, said contributing factors include 'international political volatility', and duties and taxes.

SPC, which made $508 million last year, said: 'There is usually a lag between oil price movement and pump price adjustment.'

Chevron, which made US$18.7 billion last year and which markets the Caltex brand of fuels here, said it also monitors competitors' reactions to market forces before deciding to move prices. ExxonMobil, which made US$40.6 billion last year - the highest profit for any firm in history - echoed some of the reasons cited by its rivals.

Meanwhile, pump prices in the United States - the world's biggest fuel consumer - fell last week to the lowest level in almost four months, reflecting a decline in motor fuel demand. The national price for regular petrol fell by 1.8 US cents last week to an average US$2.96 a gallon (3.8 litres).

While motorists here are not happy with pump prices, many seem resigned. Transport consultant Joseph Yee, 63, said: 'Motorists are captive customers. Once you own a car, you have to feed it. I try to plan my journeys to minimise wasteful mileage.'

Mr Ong, the oil consultant, said the industry might soon have another excuse to raise crude prices. Venezuela has stopped selling oil to ExxonMobil in response to the US company's move to use the courts to seize billions of dollars in Venezuelan assets.